Genital warts are caused by a family of similar sexually transmitted viruses.

Once a person is infected, the virus remains in the body for life. The warts may be treated or removed, but because the person remains infected with HPV (the virus that causes genital warts), the warts may recur.

Condoms provide a mechanical barrier if they are used correctly, but the virus can also be located on the scrotum or the vulva and infect the other partner during sex.

HPV have an incubation period (interval between exposure to infection and appearance of the first symptom) of one to six months. The infectivity (risk of infecting others) is highest soon after development of the lesion.

The risk of being infected with HPV increases with the number of sexual partners.

Genital warts can be treated with prescription medication, or may be removed surgically.

Unfortunately there is little evidence that removing the visible lesion (the wart) reduces the risk of transmission. The treatment of genital warts is usually for cosmetic reasons and sometimes because large lesions cause physical problems.

Although genital warts and cervical cancer are both caused by HPV, completely different strains of the virus cause these respective diseases.

HPV can be transmitted to an infant during childbirth, although this transmission mode is very low and only causes 0.05% of infections.